Sunday, March 20, 2011

Jeremy's is in reading to the kids, and I had thought I'd hurry and get a post in. Well, here I am-- I've done three posts, and he's still reading! So here comes #4-- Jen, you should be smiling. (:

Lexi is absolutely LOVING school!! We went back and forth forever on where to send her and had decided on the Utah School for the Deaf and Blind. At the last minute, however, we spoke more thoroughly with the vision people in our district, and decided to put her in school right here in Herriman. I am SO happy with our decision. This school is close, and she has the most wonderful people working with her. She has a vision/mobility specialist that is with her all the time. She does a perfect job of helping her without doing too much for her. Her teacher has been fabulous as well, and we are so appreciative of her efforts. Now, every morning, Lexi's first words are, "I want school!" She comes home every day and tries her best to tell me what happened at school. It's amazing how many words she has learned in just three months. This week she was able to tell me such details as how she went to gym, opened and shut her folder, practiced ABC's, learned to spell her name, played on the slide at recess, sang songs with her friends, heard a story about a grandma and grandpa... I mean, isn't that amazing?! We are just so happy for her that she is enjoying it so much and that her language skills are taking off!!

Lexi is using a cane now and has progressed so much in the last couple of weeks in how she uses it. I am so excited to see where she is a year or two from now. We are so proud!

As a footnote, we now have three kindergartners at three different schools. Yikes!

You may remember this post about Jer's battle with cooking cream of wheat. A few weeks ago, I woke up to find he was giving it another try. He was so excited to have it work out right this time, and we were all cheering for him. He had the water boiling and added the cream of wheat. He soon found that he could barely stir it-- it was soooo thick. You should have seen his face when he realized that he did the conversions wrong in his head and somehow added FOUR TIMES the amount of cream of wheat as what it called for. In an effort to make him feel better, I suggested adding milk and made the kids eat it anyway. It tasted ok, and Parker, bless his heart, kept saying how good it was. After Graci's spoon broke, I gave up and told them they could dump it.

This time, however, I got smart. It's usually months, or years, between cream of wheat attempts. I decided that was the problem-- that he couldn't remember time to time what he did and what went wrong. So the next time I was at the store, I purchased a new box and told him he HAD to try again.

I love sleeping in on Saturday mornings. Our "big kids" are old enough and sweet enough that they are willing to get up and take care of "the littles" while we get some extra rest. I love it. I love even more when we are wakened by an adorable 7-year-old, all dressed up, handing us outfits she has picked out and ordering us to get dressed and come downstairs to Elli's room. NOW. I love when my outfit consists of a black dress, mismatched accessories, and brown leather boots. I love how she has managed to move the piano bench into the room for our table, and that she wraps a blanket around each of us so we won't be cold. I love the cute breakfast she has prepared. I love how she wants to take pictures. And I love how she leaves the room, saying, "OK, it's time for you to have alone time!"

When we fell in love 20 years ago, we started down a path that has been challenging, exhausting, and breathtakingly beautiful. Here we chronicle the blessings and stressings of parenting some pretty amazing children. We think they're the perfect travel companions as we look forward to the next fork in the road. Welcome to our journey.

Jeremy and Christianne

Taylor Jeremy--18

Parker Matthew--17

The red-headed social butterfly, he's our all-star athlete, top student, outdoor-loving, spunky second-born, with a heart of pure gold!

Jessica Anne "Jesi"--14

Our little princess with the big smile, Jesi loves fashion, friends, hanging with her siblings, and vacations. She sparkles!

Jacob Michael-- 6/8/2004

Little one of heavenly birth, born too soon to bloom on earth. You have taught us so much--we love you, Jacob!

Emily Anne "Emmy"--9/28/2005

Emily's exquisite little hands and feet have left their mark in this world. Her body was tiny, but her spirit enormous. We miss her!

Elizabeth Mei "Elli"--13

Elli's world may be dark, but she's the light of our lives! Lover of music, chocolate, and new toys, she fights a courageous battle with autism while bringing joy to all who know her!!

Gracelin Kate "Graci"--19

Showing true grace throughout her battles with heart disease and pulmonary hypertension, our Gracester is loved by everyone! She's smart, gorgeous, friendly, and has faith to move mountains!

Alexander Philip "Xander"--12

With a spunk and smile that could outmatch anyone's, our Xander has not let Cloves Syndrome get the best of him. He's a talented chef, a caring friend to MANY, our best helper, and is full of teenage humor.

Alexis Li "Lexi"--13

Meet the friendliest girl on the planet! Blind from birth, Lexi amazes all of us with her braille skills, determination, talents, but mosly by the way she spends her days SMILING. She is an angel in every way. We are thrilled to have our darling daughter home six years from China!!

Sophia Breanne "Sophi"--9

Her eyes called out to us from half-way around the world. Little Sophi is growing up and we would do anything to freeze her in time! She's beautiful, smart, and coy and can do amazing things with her toes! She has inspired people all around the world and we can't believe she is ours. Sophi = perfection.

Calais Rose "Cali"--17

Charming Cali joined our family in December of 2012. This girl is beautiful both inside and out. Born with spina bifida, Cali is confined to a wheelchair, but that does not keep her from enjoying life to the fullest. She is smart, opinionated, strong, and lovely in every way. She is a light in our family and a magnet for handsome young men!

Conner Allen-- 17

Meet our newest addition! Home three years from China, Conner makes us wonder what we ever did without him. Blind from birth, he will blow you away with his incredible talent on the piano. He is sweet, witty, girl-crazy, kind and finally, OURS! We love you, Conner!

The Dog

Baxter-- 6 months

She begged and pleaded and wrote letter after letter telling us why she NEEDED a dog, and Sophi finally got her wish! Meet Baxter, the cutest mini-audssiedoodle on the planet.